1. Field of the Invention
The claimed invention generally relates to an assembly for sectioning a food preparation. More specifically, the claimed invention relates to a blade assembly for enabling users thereof to section and display food preparations as form-prepared in food preparation containers and the like.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is common practice to bake food items such as brownies, cakes, and cookies as one continuous sheet in food preparation containers of standard sizes such as 9 inches by 13 inches and 8 inches by 8 inches, or any number or circular food preparation containers having variously sized diameters. The baked or otherwise prepared food item is then commonly sliced into a plurality of smaller food items such as bars, squares, or wedge-shaped pieces for removal from the baking pan or food preparation container. The task of slicing the food preparation into bars, squares, or wedge-shaped pieces is commonly performed by using a knife or other similar instrument having a single cutting blade that is customarily used to make several individual longitudinal and lateral sectioning cuts defining the sides of each of the bars, squares, or wedge-shaped pieces.
The task of slicing the food preparation into a number of smaller food sections with a single bladed knife requires overcoming several challenges in order to achieve a desirable end result. One of the challenges that must be overcome is ensuring that the sectioning cuts are made straight. Freehandedly cutting a straight line in a sheet of brownies, for example, using a single bladed knife without reference to a straight edge such as the upright side of the food preparation container is often difficult to accomplish. Another challenge that must be overcome is ensuring that the sectioning cuts are made completely through the food item. If close attention is not paid to the depth of the cut made by the knife, the individual bars, squares, or wedge-shaped pieces will often not be completely separated. An even further challenge that must be overcome is ensuring that the food sections are sized appropriately. It is commonly desired to evenly section the food item so that all of the food sections are of the same size. However, it is difficult to achieve substantially equally sized and shaped food sections when freehandedly cutting the food preparation with a single blade knife.
There are several different types of cutting apparatuses in the prior art that use multiple cutting blades to cut food items into smaller sections. Some of these prior art devices are disclosed here in the form of previously issued United States Patents. However, these previously issued United States Patents do not disclose or teach a device that addresses the previously mentioned problems concerning cutting a sheet of brownies or similar type food item into a plurality of smaller portions within a food preparation container having upright sides.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,175,512 ('512 Patent), which issued to Flemal, discloses a Scraper. The '512 Patent teaches a scraper comprising a plurality of assembling bars, a plurality of scraping blades arranged transversely of and interlocked with the assembling bars, a plate provided with depending flanges adapted to interlock with certain of the assembling bars, a hand grasp operatively connected to the plate, and clamping members coacting with the plate and certain of the assembling bars for maintaining the plate in applied position.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,754,541 ('541 Patent), which issued to Benoit, discloses an Egg Case Filler. The '541 Patent teaches a filler structure having cross walls. One of the cross walls is edge-notched to interlock with the other wall, which other wall comprises a D-slot through which the first wall is extended. The edges defining the D-slot present a bowed portion, the ends of which are shouldered and extended past a connecting straight portion to accommodate the notched wall when bowed without catching upon the notches in the edges thereof and to support the notched wall when straightened between the straight and shouldered portions which lie upon opposite sides of the wall.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,118,211 ('211 Patent), which issued to Lutz, discloses a Liquid Congealing Apparatus. The '211 Patent teaches a removable grid for dividing an ice tray into a plurality of cells for forming ice cubes comprising a single strip of flexible metal bent to form a plurality of vertical transverse walls of double thicknesses of metal, a plurality of vertical longitudinal walls formed of a single thickness of metal connecting adjacent thicknesses of the transverse walls, and a plurality of vertical longitudinal wall members extending between the transverse walls and each comprising two thicknesses of metal bent from the transverse walls and folded adjacent a contiguous transverse wall.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,000,845 ('845 Patent), which issued to Zeller, discloses a Partition Assembly and Partition Strips Therefor. The '845 Patent teaches a partition assembly having interlocking longitudinal and transverse partition strips to form compartments or cells for the reception of bottles, cans or other containers. The strips have sections that form the walls of the cells and are defined by spaced slots in each strip extending from one edge and a substantial depth into the strip and relatively shallow notches in the opposite edge of the strip in alignment with said slots. A set of sections, including the section at one end of each strip, has tabular projections near one edge extending into the slots in one direction, and a section at the opposite end of the strip has a tabular projection extending into a slot but in the opposite direction, the slots of the longitudinal strips interfitting with the slots of the transverse strips with the tabs of one interlocking in notches of the other forming a partition assembly.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,648,300 ('300 Patent), which issued to Hassenfelt, discloses a Biscuit Cutting Apparatus. The '300 Patent teaches a square frame surrounding and extending upwardly from a planar cutting surface to define a dough compartment. A plurality of vertical slots in each side wall extends from the top edge thereof down to the cutting surface to provide a guide for a cutting blade inserted therein. The slots are arranged in such a pattern that three, four, or six equal width slices may be formed in each direction depending on the slots selected for use. The cutter blade is accurately shaped along the bottom from end to end to ensure good contact with the cutting surface. An enlarged end portion at each end of the cutting blade prevents inadvertent dislodgement of the cutting blade during usage. A flour trough is provided on one side wall to facilitate the maintenance of a floured cutting blade during usage.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,074,777 ('777 Patent), which issued to Gamer, discloses an Apparatus for Making a Split Pie. The '777 Patent teaches a pie dividing assembly adapted to be inserted into a conventional circular pie pan once it is covered with a bottom sheet or layer of pie dough for separating the pie into a plurality of separate and distinct pie sections, preferably two, each adapted to receive a different and distinct pie filling therein before an optional top layer or cover of pie dough is placed thereover and the pie baked. Normally, after the pie is at least partially baked, approximately ⅔ baked, to where the pie filling has set, the pie divider is removed and the pie allowed to bake until done at which time the fully baked single unitary pie will have a plurality of sections each having a different and distinct pie filling therein. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the pie divider separates the pie into two equally dimensioned halves but embodiments are provided for separating the pie into three, four, six, eight, etc. dimensionally equal or unequal sections, as desired. The invention also contemplates a split-filling pie made as a product by process, and a method of making a split-filling pie. Another embodiment is provided for dividing a pizza into a plurality of different and distinct slices before the topping or combination of toppings is added.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,343,623 ('623 Patent), which issued to Cole, discloses a Knife Assembly for Cutting a Food Product. The '623 Patent teaches a knife blade and knife blade assembly for cutting food products into sticks or slices without causing surface cracking. The knife blade has a cutting portion defining a cutting edge and is mounted in the knife assembly such that a tension force is exerted on the knife blade in the plane of the cutting edge. The cutting edge of the knife blade is not sharp, but is generally flat and extends between parallel sides of the knife blade. The individual knife blades are formed of stainless steel and are electro-polished to remove any surface defects or sharp edges which may produce stress concentrations. This enables a significant tension force to be applied to the knife blade without diminishing its useful life. The electro-polishing process may also round off the comers of the juncture between the flat cutting edge and the parallel knife blade sides.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,579,582 ('582 Patent), which issued to Carlson, discloses a Puzzle Cookie Cutter. The '582 Paten teaches a puzzle cookie cutter comprising a cutting die holder and at least one cutting die removably securable in the holder. The die or dies provide for the cutting of cookie dough, batter, or the like into several separate, irregularly shaped and sized interfitting pieces, which pieces may be reassembled as a puzzle after baking to provide entertainment for the consumer of the cookie. The dies may be provided in virtually any regular or irregular geometric shape, animal or other caricature or representation, and/or any alphanumeric character, as desired. The die or dies may also provide for the spaced apart separation of the cut dough or batter, to allow for expansion or flow of the batter or dough during the baking process, in order that the baked pieces will have a close fit with one another without interference. The cut pieces may be baked adjacent one another on a sheet or pan and decorated after the baking process as desired, then separated randomly to provide a challenge akin to that of the assembly of a relatively simple jigsaw or picture puzzle, in addition to the enjoyment of eating the baked cookie pieces.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,597,113 ('113 Patent), which issued to Bradford, discloses a Recyclable Container Partition. The '113 Paten teaches a collapsible partition assembly comprising a set of parallel longitudinal dividers and a set of parallel transverse dividers intersecting at a plurality of intersections. Each of the longitudinal dividers has a series of evenly spaced slots which extend downwardly from a top edge of the longitudinal divider to approximately the middle of the longitudinal divider. Each transverse divider has a series of evenly spaced slots, each slot extending upwardly from a bottom edge of the transverse divider to approximately the middle of the transverse divider. The slots of the longitudinal and transverse dividers engage with one another at the intersections. Dividers are secured to each other at each intersection by a securement bead which extends from a point proximate the top edge of the intersection to proximate the bottom edge of the intersection. The intersecting dividers create four angles. The securement bead runs along one angle and permits the partition assembly to be collapsed and recycled.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,848,470 ('470 Patent), which issued to Anderson, discloses an Impact Actuated Baker Grid Device. The '470 Patent teaches an impact actuated bakery grid device for producing uniform portions of baked goods wherein the grid device includes a force generating unit operatively associated with a handle assembly member which is connected at widely spaced locations on a grid member for forcibly ejecting the portions of baked goods from within the confines of a plurality of compartments within the grid member.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,276,918 ('918 Patent), which issued to Slaughter et al., discloses a Dough Cutting Apparatus. The '918 Patent teaches a dough cutting apparatus comprising a plurality of spaced apart blades the lower edges of which are uniformly curved from one end of said blades to the other and a plurality of intersecting spaced apart blades the lower edges of which are straight. The blades cooperate to form multiple uniformly sized cavities therebetween. A handle assembly is attached to the blades for engagement by the user of the apparatus for rocking the apparatus along the lower edges of the curved blades to separate a layer of dough into separate multiple dough products.
These previously issued United States Patents do not disclose or teach a food-cutting or sectioning device that is used to section a food item or preparation within a food preparation container into a plurality of uniformly sized and shaped smaller portions. Therefore, there is a need for a device that can uniformly and simultaneously section a food item or preparation within a container such as a food preparation container for displaying the food preparation in smaller portions. There is a further need for a device of this type that is easily stored during periods of time when the device is not in use. Therefore, there is a need for a blade assembly which is expandable for sectioning and displaying a food preparation in smaller food sections, and which assembly is collapsible into a folded form for ease of storage.